REPORT 


OF  THE 

ON 

ROAI5S,  BRIDGES  AXB>  OLAVD  MTIGATIOW, 

RELATIVE  TO  THE 

CANALS  AND  RAIL  ROADS 


©if  iuiieii  cg@mKfl@gfWif 


Mr.  STROHM,  Chairman. 


READ  IN  SENATE,  MAY  24,  1839. 


HARRISBURG: 
PRINTED  BY  E.  GUYER. 


1839 


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report. 


Mr  Strohm,  from  the  committee  on  roads,  bridges  and  inland  navi- 
gation,  acting  under  the  resolution  of  the  Senate  passed  on  the 
twenty-fifth  day  of  March  last,  which  authorized  them  to  send  for 
persons  and  papers,  for  the  purpose  of  enquiring  as  to  the  amount  of 
money  actually  necessary  for  repairs  upon  our  different  finished  lines 
of  canals  and  rail  roads,  and  to  ascertain  the  amount  of  money  ac¬ 
tually  due  for  repairs  and  materials  furnished  for  repairs ;  and 
whether  any  supervisors  have  unsettled  accounts,  and  whether  they 
have  procured  authenticated  vouchers,  without  paying  the  amount 
due  to  laborers  and  others ;  and  that  they  also  have  power  to  visit  the 
different  lines  of  public  works  andl  employ  an  engineer  to  accompany 


them,  made  the  following  report,  riz  : 

That  they  have,  during  the  recess  of  the  Legislature,  visited  all 
the  canals  which  have  been  constructed  and  completed  by  the  Com¬ 
monwealth,  and  also  the  Allegheny  Portage  rail  road. 

The  time  in  which  the  committee  were  compelled  to  execute  the 
dutv  assigned  to  them,  in  order  to  enable  them  to  attend  to  their 
legislative  duties  at  the  re-assembling  of  the  Legislature,  was  too 
limited  to  permit  them  to  make  s«ch  a  minute  investigation,  and  ac¬ 
curate  detailed  report,  as  would  bfe  desirable  on  the  occasion.  The 
season  of  the  year,  too,  was  unfavorable  to  the  examination  of  some 
portion  of  the  work— being  a  time  when  the  streams  are  full,  and  the 
volume  of  water  too  great  to  admit  of  a  careful  examination  of  the 
condition  of  the  dams,  which  can  only  be  done  advantageously,  an 
with  a  degree  of  accuracy  approximating  to  the  truth,  during  the 
summer  and  autumn,  when  the  waters,  usually,  are  at  the  lowest 
stage,  and  when  an  occasional  submersion  can  be  endured  without 
suffering  disagreeable  sensations  or  serious  consequences.  In  esti¬ 
mating  the  amount  necessary  for  repairing  the  dams,  the  committee 


0 


;&99.39 


4 


were  obliged  to  rely  on  information  obtained  from  persons  acquainted 
with  the  particular  situation,  or  adopt  the  report  of  engineers,  founded 
probably  on  no  better  data. 

Upon  reading  the  report  of  the  Board  of  Canal  Commissioners, 
dated  March  11,  1839,  your  committee  were  struck  with  the  anxious 
desire  evinced,  throughout  that  report,  to  impress  upon  the  public 
mind  the  belief  that,  through  “  negligence  and  inattention,  upivards 
of  one  million  and  a  half  of  dollars ”  was  necessary  to  render  the 
public  improvements  “  adequate  to  transact  the  business  which  may 
and  should  be  done  upon  them.”  If  this  were  the  fact,  it  would  be 
right  that  the  Legislature,  and  the  whole  people  should  know  it;  but 
evidence  of  a  contrary  character,  sufficient  to  satisfy  your  committee 
that  the  amount  required  for  repairs  was  greatly  exaggerated,  had 
been  developed  before  the  report  was  printed,  and  a  personal  exami¬ 
nation  has  only  confirmed  what  concurrent  circumstances  had  pre¬ 
viously  rendered  evident.  The  sum  of  one  hundred  thousand  dollars 
had  not  been  expended  in  repairing  the  improvements,  when  your 
committee  passed  along  the  lines  end  found  them  in  a  condition  (ex¬ 
cept  in  a  few  places  that  will  be  hereafter  noticed,)  to  accommodate 
the  most  active  business  that  has  ever  been  transacted  upon  our  canals. 
This,  then,  was  indubitable  evidence,  that  it  did  not  require  “  one 
million  and  a  half  of  dollars ,  to  render  them  adequate  to  transact 
the  business  which  may  and  should  be  done  upon  them.” 

The  committee  found  the  Eastern  division,  commencing  at  the 
outlet  locks  at  Columbia,  and  terminating  at  the  outlet  lock  in  the 
pool  of  the  Clark’s  Ferry  dam,  in  good  navigable  order.  On  this 
line  some  repairs  are  necessary,  but  they  are  of  no  considerable 
magnitude,  and  may  be  effected  without  interrupting  the  navigation. 
The  water-way  near  Columbia  should  be  renewed,  as  the  timber  is 
very  much  decayed  and  scarcely  susceptible  of  judicious  repair. 
Some  of  the  other  water-ways  on  this  line  require  some  repairs. 
One  of  the  piers  at  the  aqueduct  over  Conewago  creek  has  given 
way.  It  is  now  temporarily  supported  by  posts,  but  the  pier  should 
be  rebuilt  at  the  earliest  possible  day.  The  aqueduct  at  Swatara  re¬ 
quires  considerable  repairs,  and  those  over  Chicques,  Conoy,  Clark’s, 
Stony  and  Paxton  creeks  need  some  repairs.  The  aqueduct  at 
Clark’s  creek  is  the  worst  on  this  line ;  two  of  the  piers  will  have  to 
be  rebuilt  and  the  superstructure  renewed.  The  abutments  also 
require  some  repairing. 


5 


The  locks  on  this  line  are  generally  in  good  condition.  The  upper 
outlet  lock  from  the  basin  at  Portsmouth  to  the  Svvatara  creek,  is  said 
to  be  defective  at  the  foundation ;  this  is  not  perceptible  when  the 
water  is  in,  but  the  greater  portion  of  the  wall  is  straight,  and  seems 
to  be  permanent.  A  number  of  the  lock  gates  are  a  good  deal  shat¬ 
tered,  and  require  to  be  renewed  during  the  ensuing  winter,  and 
probably  may  need  some  repair  during  the  summer.  Some  of  the 
bridges  and  bridge  abutments  stand  in  need  of  repairing,  and* a  few 
will  have  to  be  rebuilt.  The  canal  banks,  and  especially  the  towing-  * 
path  bank,  needs  repairing  in  many  places.  Where  the  banks  are 
composed  of  sand,  clay,  or  alluvia]]  earth,  as  is  the  case  in  many  pla¬ 
ces,  the  agitation  of  the  water  is  constantly  washing  it  away,  render¬ 
ing  frequent  repairs  necessary,  and  requiring  constant  vigilance  on 
the  part  of  the  public  agents,  to  prtevent  breaches  which  would  cost 
considerable  labor  and  expense  to  repair.  This  will  continue  to  be 
the  case,  until  those  vulnerable  parts  of  the  canal  banks  are  perma¬ 
nently  secured,  by  a  good  slope  wall  or  lined  with  timber.  On  this 
subject  the  committee  will  give  their  opinion  in  a  subsequent  part  of 
their  report. 

On  this  division  of  the  canal  a  grpat  proportion  of  the  towing-path, 
and  part  of  the  berm  bank,  is  supported  by  high  vertical  walls. 
These  walls  have,  in  many  places,  given  way,  and  parts  of  them 
have  fallen  down.  The  security  of  the  canals  renders  it  necessary 
that  those  parts  should  be  rebuilt  without  delay.  The  cause  of  this 
dilapidation  at  so  early  a  period  nay  be  ascribed,  in  part,  to  defects 


in  the  original  construction,  but  in  : 
of  the  materials  used.  A  kind  of 


ome  instances,  more  to  the  quality 
slate  stone,  found  along  the  banks 


of  the  river,  the  character  of  which  was  not  well  understood  at  the 
time,  was  used  in  the  construction  of  those  walls.  Experience  has 
shown  that  when  long  exposed  to  the  action  of  the  atmosphere,  those 
stones,  in  some  measure,  decompose  and  crumble  into  small  pieces ; 
consequently,  whenever  this  kind  of  stone  has  been  used,  the  wall 
will  inevitably  sink  and  eventually. fall.  The  guard  fence  on  the 
berm  side  of  the  canal  is  decayed,  and  in  many  places  entirely  pros¬ 
trated.  This  is  an  item  not  essentially  necessary  to  the  navigation  of 
the  canal,  but  is  of  great  public  utility,  in  promoting  the  security  of 
those  who  travel  the  road  immediately  on  the  bank  of  the  canal, 
which  has  been  constructed  by  the  Commonwealth  in  lieu  of  one 
heretofore  enjoyed  by  the  public,  on  the  ground  now  occupied  by  the 
canal.  It  is  therefore  incumbent  on  the  Commonwealth  to  keep 


6 


those  guard-fences  in  a  proper  state  of  repair.  The  committee  be¬ 
lieve  that  forty  thousand  dollars  will  be  required  on  this  line  for  or¬ 
dinary  repairs,  and  completing  those  locks  now  in  progress,  two  of 
which  are  nearly  completed. 

JUNIATA  DIVISION. 

From  the  outlet  lock  at  Clarke’s  Ferry  to  Hollidaysburg.  This 
.division,  from  its  present  appearance,  may,  with  the  exception  of 
the  aqueduct  near  the  mouth  of  Juniata,  with  proper  care  and  a  rea¬ 
sonable  expenditure,  be  kept  in  good  navigable  order  throughout  the 
season.  The  aqueduct  above  referred  to,  is  in  a  precarious  situation. 
Two  spans  have  been  renewed,  the  workmanship  of  which  seems  to 
be  very  substantial  and  well  executed.  The  remaining  four  spans 
are  much  decayed,  and  at  the  time  your  committee  passed,  a  portion 
thereof  had  sunk  so  much  that  it  became  necessary  to  draw  off  the 
water  and  repair  it.  It  is  now  supported  by  posts,  placed  under  it, 
and  so  long  as  those  remain,  the  navigation  may  probably  not  be  in¬ 
terrupted;  but  should  a  freshet  in  the  river  sweep  away  those  sup¬ 
ports,  portions  of  the  aqueduct  would,  in  all  likelihood,  sink  so  much 
as  to  render  it  impassable  for  a  time,  or  perhaps  make  its  immediate 
reconstruction  unavoidable.  Your  committee  agree  with  the  engi¬ 
neer,  that  “  the  materials  for  renewing  it  should  be  provided  and 
framed,  in  readiness  to  be  put  up  next  winter,  or  sooner  if  necessary.” 
This  has  in  part  been  done.  The  remainder  of  the  aqueducts,  the 
locks,  lock  gates,  waste  weirs,  culverts  and  bridges,  may  be  pro¬ 
nounced  in  tolerable  condition,  and  not  likely  to  need  more  than  the 
usual  ordinary  repairs  during  the  season.  The  committee  are  of 
opinion,  that  the  estimate  for  repairs  on  this  division,  as  made  by  the 
engineer,  is  most  extravagantly  high.  Indeed,  the  very  language  of 
the  report  seems  to  evince  a  disposition  to  cavil  and  find  fault,  rather 
than  to  give  a  candid  opinion  and  a  reasonable  estimate  of  the  amount 
required  for  all  necessary  and  judicious  repairs.  The  extraordinary 
character  of  this  report,  induces  the  committee  to  advert  particularly 
to  some  of  the  items  which  compose  the  aggregate  of  two  hundred 
and  thirty-two  thousand  dollars,  said  to  be  necessary  to  put  this  line 
in  complete  navigable  order.  Fifty-three  thousand  dollars  is  put 
down  for  rebuilding  aqueducts  on  the  present  plan,  including  two 
spans,  then  puiting  in  at  Duncan’s  Island,  and  an  additional  sum  of 
fifty-six  thousand  dollars  for  widening  thirteen  aqueducts  to  thirty 


7 


feet  in  the  clear.  Towards  the  construction  of  the  two  spans  in  the 
aqueduct  at  Duncan’s  Island,  a  specific  appropriation  of  fourteen 
thousand  dollars  has  been  made,  a  sum  nearly  sufficient  to  renew 
the  whole  trunk  of  the  aqueduct;  it  is  composed  of  six  spans,  two 
of  which  have  been  renewed  at  an  expense  of  two  thousand  four 
hundred  dollars  each,  at  which  rate,  the  whole  would  cost  only  four¬ 
teen  thousand  four  hundred  dollars,  being  but  four  hundred  dollars 
more  than  the  appropriation  already  made.  Independent  of  that,  the 
committee  cannot  conceive  that  any  thing  like  the  sum  mentioned 
will  be  necessary  for  rebuilding  aqueducts.  The  additional  sum  re¬ 
quired  to  widen  aqueducts  is,  in  a  great  measure,  superfluous.  For, 
though  it  may  be  advantageous  to  have  the  aqueducts  widened,  and 
may  be  proper  to  do  so  where  rebuilding  is  actually  necessary,  the 
committee  are  satisfied  that  very  few  (if  any)  of  the  aqueducts  on  this 
line,  are  in  a  condition  to  justify  such  an  undertaking  within  the  pre¬ 
sent  year,  and  therefore  the  sum  of  ninety-four  thousand  dollars  may 
safely  be  deducted  from  those  two  items.  The  amount  required  for 
road,  farm  and  tow-path  bridges,  and  for  repairing  and  building  locks, 
lock  gates,  and  waste  weirs,  seem  to  have  been  estimated  upon  the 
same  high-pressure  principle,  and  may  safely  be  reduced  more  than 
twenty-five  thousand  dollars.  The  sum  of  forty-six  thousand  two 
hundred  dollars  is  estimated  for  cleaning  out  pools  at  Hollidaysburg, 
Frankstown  and  Canoe  creek,  and  for  cleaning  out  canal  and  raising 
and  clearing  towing-path.  The  amount  required  for  cleaning  out  the 
canal,  your  committee  had  not  anjopportunity  of  ascertaining,  as  the 
canal  was  filled  with  water;  but,  from  the  great  facility  with  which 
heavy  laden  boats  pass  and  repass,  the  committee  are  strongly  in¬ 
clined  to  believe  that  this  too  has  been  greatly  exaggerated  and  might 
without  risk  of  stinting  the  appropriation,  be  greatly  reduced.  The 
committee  believe  that  the  sum  necessary  for  repairs  on  the  Juniata 
division  is  about  eighty  thousand  dollars. 


i 


PORTAGE  RAIL  ROAD. 

The  committee  found  the  Portage  rail  road  in  good  order,  so  as  to 
admit  the  transportation  of  all  the  passengers,  produce,  merchandize, 
coal,  &c.  &c.  during  the  most  active  business  season  of  the  year, 
without  difficulty  or  delay.  Some  repairs  are  necessary  and  always 
will  be  on  such  an  improvement,  but  the  committee  are  of  the  opin¬ 
ion  that  on  the  road  alone,  exclusive  of  the  amount  required  for 


8 


additional  depots  and  repairing  engines,  one  half  of  the  amount  esti¬ 
mated  by  the  engineer  on  the  first  of  February  last,  would  be  suffi¬ 
cient,  at  this  time,  to  make  the  necessary  repairs  for  the  balance  of 
the  season.  How  much  has  already  been  expended,  since  the  engi¬ 
neer’s  estimate  was  made,  the  committee  have  not  ascertained;  some 
of  the  timber  on  the  inclined  plane  is  decayed  and  should  be  replaced 
with  new  timber.  This,  in  a  country  where  timber  can  be  obtained 
at  a  very  low  rate,  will  be  cheaper,  at  least  so  long  as  the  iron  bars 
are  good,  than  to  lay  those  planes  with  T  rails.  In  regard  to  the 
amount  necessary  for  the  repair  of  engines,  your  committee  made 
neither  examination  nor  estimate,  not  deeming  themselves  competent 
judges  of  those  matters.  The  viaduct  at  Hollidaysburg  needs  some 
repairing,  and  the  plan  suggested  by  the  engineer,  to  make  additional 
passages  for  the  water,  should  be  adopted.  The  committee  estimate 
the  amount  necessary  for  repairs  on  the  Portage  rail  road,  at  twenty- 
five  thousand  dollars. 

WESTERN  DIVISION. 

This  division,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  of  the  locks  and  dams, 
was  in  excellent  order  when  the  committee  passed  along.  In  some 
of  the  locks  the  mortar  has  been  washed  out,  and  consequently  the 
water  passes  freely  between  the  stones,  and  in  one  or  two  instances 
entirely  through  the  banks ;  but  the  walls  appear  firm  and  substan¬ 
tial — the  injurious  leakage  may  be  prevented  at  a  slight  expense. 
The  dams  appear  to  be  in  perfect  repair,  but  the  committee  were  in¬ 
formed  by  persons  who  had  opportunities  of  knowing  their  true 
situation,  that  some  of  them  require  cribbing  and  gravelling.  The 
committee,  for  reasons  already  given,  do  not  pretend  to  accuracy  in 
this  particular.  Some  of  the  bridges,  waste  weirs  and  lock  gates 
require  repairing,  and  some  will  have  to  be  rebuilt.  The  amount 
required  to  keep  this  division  in  good  repair  during  the  season,  and 
make  the  necessary  repairs  during  the  ensuing  winter,  unless  some 
unforeseen  accident  should  render  more  necessary  than  can  now 
reasonably  be  anticipated,  will  not,  in  the  opinion  of  the  committee, 
exceed  thirty-five  thousand  dollars. 

REAVER  DIVISION. 

Some  of  the  locks  on  this  division  require  repair,  of  which  the 
heaviest  item  will  perhaps  be  at  the  out-lock  at  the  Ohio  river.  This 


9 


lock  was  originally  located  to  accommodate  the  canal  at  a  low  stage 
of  water  in  the  river;  consequently,  at  any  other  stage,  it  is  rather  too 
low,  and  liable  to  receive  a  deposite  of  sand,  which  renders  it  diffi¬ 
cult  to  be  kept  in  good  working  order.  On  this  line  there  are  seven 
dams,  which  at  present  seem  to  be  in  tolerable  good  condition,  but 
which,  in  reality,  from  the  best  information  the  committee  could  ob¬ 
tain,  require  considerable  repairs.  From  Beaver  to  New  Castle  the 
towing-path  is  reasonably  good,  as  are  also  the  aqueducts,  except  one 
near  New  Castle,  which  is  in  a  dilapidated  condition,  and  needs  a 
good  deal  of  repairing. 

The  piers  of  the  towing-path  bridge,  at  the  mouth  of  Conneque- 
nessing  creek,  have  been  injured  by  ice  and  driftwood,  but  not  so 
materially  as  to  render  its  reconstruction  necessary  ;  with  compara¬ 
tively  slight  repairs,  it  may  stand  for  several  years,  unless  farther  in¬ 
jured  by  extraordinary  freshets.  The  towing-path  above  New  Cas¬ 
tle  has  been  very  much  injured,  and  in  some  places  entirely  washed 
away.  The  towing-path  in  many  places  has  always  been  too  low, 
and  will  constantly  be  subject  to  overflowing  unless  raised  to  a  greater 
height.  A  part  thereof  has  already  been  repaired,  and  other  por¬ 
tions  were  in  progress  when  the  committee  visited  the  line.  The 
present  navigation  terminates  at  Western  Reserve  Harbor,  four  miles 
above  New  Castle.  On  the  remaining  two  miles,  the  banks  being 
composed  principally  of  light  sandy  loam,  easily  affected  by  the  agi¬ 
tation  of  the  water  and  yielding  to  the  friction  of  the  current,  the 
towing-path  has  been  entirely  destroyed.  Your  committee  would 
deem  it  unwise  to  expend  any  money  on  that  part  of  it  during  the 
present  season.  It  is  utterly  useless  until  the  Shenango  line  is  com¬ 
pleted,  which  will  probably  not  be  under  two  years,  by  which  time 
the  labor  and  money  now  expended  on  this  portion  of  the  towing- 
path,  would  be  very  likely  to  be  all  swept  away  again. 

The  committee  estimate  the  cost  of  repairing  the  Beaver  division, 
at  thirty  thousand  dollars. 

i  FRENCH  CREEK  FEEDER  AND  FRANKLIN  LINE. 

The  feeder  dam  above  Dr.  Bemus’  mill,  has  in  part  been  swept 

»  away,  and  the  remainder  so  much  injured  as  to  render  the  rebuilding 

of  the  whole  unavoidable.  In  addition  to  this,  a  considerable  portion 
of  the  mound  between  the  dam  and  the  guard  lock,  and  which  in 
fact  constituted  part  of  the  dam,  has  been  swept  to  the  foundation, 


10 


and  several  feet  below  it.  The  scite  of  this  dam  is  unfavorable  in 
several  points  of  view.  First,  in  regard  to  the  facility  for  securing 
its  permanency,  in  the  absence  of  rock  foundation,  which  cannot  be 
done  without  increasing  the  length  of  the  weir,  and  of  course  the 
expense  of  construction.  Second,  the  great  length  of  guard  bank 
necessary  to  prevent  the  water  from  overflowing  a  considerable  area 
of  valuable  land,  and  thus  rendering  the  payment  of  heavy  damages 
inevitable  ;  and  third,  the  peculiar  porosity  of  the  soil,  through 
which  the  water  percolates,  rendering  the  adjacent  lands  unproduc¬ 
tive,  and  subjecting  the  State  to  the  payment  of  damages,  which  have 
not  yet  been  liquidated.  The  committee  were  assured,  that  little 
more  than  a  mile  higher  up  the  creek,  an  eligible  situation  for  a  dam 
could  be  obtained,  where  a  good  foundation  would  be  had,  and  the 
height  of  the  dam  materially  diminished,  and  where  very  little 
damage  would  be  occasioned  to  private  property.  Not  having  viewed 
this  scite,  the  committee  forbear  speaking  confidently  on  the  subject, 
but  recommend  that  discretionary  power  be  given  to  the  Canal  Com¬ 
missioners,  to  change  the  location  of  this  dam,  if  in  their  opinion, 
after  due  examination  by  a  scientific  engineer,  the  interests  of  the 
Commonwealth  would  be  promoted  by  such  change. 

An  engineer  employed  by  the  committee  estimated  the  cost  of  re¬ 
building  this  dam  on  the  old  scite  at  nineteen  thousand  one  hundred 
and  forty-three  dollars.  The  engineer  employed  by  the  Canal  Com¬ 
missioners  estimates  it  at  twenty-one  thousand  nine  hundred  and 
twenty  dollars.  This  difference  in  a  work  of  that  character  and 
magnitude,  is  not  material,  and  in  round  numbers,  twenty  thousand 
dollars  might  be  considered  a  fair  estimate.  The  cost  of  constructing 
a  dam  about  a  mile  higher  up  the  creek,  at  or  near  M’Guffin’s  Falls, 
and  extending  the  feeder  to  that  point,  is  estimated  at  twenty-nine 
thousand  dollars,  and  would  avoid  the  necessity  of  keeping  up  a 
guard  bank  of  about  three  fourths  of  a  mile  in  length,  of  which  a 
part  has  already  been  swept  away,  and  being  composed  of  light  allu¬ 
vial  material,  will  always  be  subject  to  injury  from  freshets.  The 
aqueduct  over  French  creek,  needs  considerable  repairs.  One  of  the 
abutments  mu3t  be  rebuilt;  and  the  upper  end  of  one  pier  has  given 
way.  The  timber  of  the  superstructure  is  decayed,  and  must  be  re¬ 
newed.  Large  deposites  of  sand  and  gravel  have  been  made  at  dif¬ 
ferent  points  of  the  canal,  by  the  discharge  of  streams  and  freshets 
from  the  hill  sides. 


11 


The  berm  bank  has  in  many  places  been  protected  by  a  timber  wall 
at  the  foot  of  deep  side  cuts.  Much  of  this  will  require  repairing, 
and  in  some  places  renewing — some  of  the  bridges  ought  to  be  re¬ 
paired. 

The  object  and  design  of  this  feeder,  being  to  supply  the  Conneaut 
and  Shenango  lines  of  the  Pennsylvania  canal,  usually  denominated 
the  Erie  extension,  with  water,  at  the  summit  level,  by  conveying 
the  waters  of  the  French  creek  into  Conneaut  lake,  making  use  of 
said  lake  as  a  reservoir.  The  feeder  then,  is  entirely  useless,  until 
one  or  both  those  lines  are  made  navigable.  Should  the  Shenango 
line  be  completed,  the  waters  of  Conneaut  lake  alone  might  be  suf¬ 
ficient  to  supply  that,  for  the  limited  trade  that  will  be  thrown  upon 
it  previous  to  the  connection  with  the  lake  been  completed.  If  these 
premises  are  correct,  as  your  committee  believe  them  to  be,  the 
French  creek  feeder,  as  such,  will  not  be  needed  until  the  canal  from 
Conneaut  lake  to  Erie  is  finished,  which  in  all  probability  will  not  be 
before  the  spring  of  1842.  To  put  the  feeder  in  complete  navigable 
order  during  the  present  season,  will  only  be  to  expose  it  to  the  fury 
of  floods  and  storms,  and  the  more  slow,  though  not  less  certain 
operation  of  all-destroying  time  and  natural  decay,  for  two  years 
before  it  is  actually  wanted. 

Your  committee,  therefore,  are  of  the  opinion  that  any  expenditure 
upon  the  French  creek  feeder  at  this  time,  except  for  repairing  a  few 
of  the  bridges,  and  providing  materials  for  the  dam  which  ought  to 
be  put  under  contract  during  thq  present  season,  would  be  injudi¬ 
cious,  if  not  altogether  useless.  For  this  purpose  the  sum  of  fifteen 
thousand  dollars  would  be  sufficient. 

FRANKLIN  LINE. 

One  of  the  dams  upon  this  line  has  been  entirely  swept  away.  A 
canal  was  substituted  for  the  dam  and  slackwater,  which  is  about  one 
third  completed.  Another  dam  has  been  partially  destroyed,  thus 
rendering  the  navigation  entirely  useless,  except  for  descending, 
when  the  water  is  high.  The  principle  amount  necessary  to  put 
this  line  in  navigable  order,  will  be  required  for  repairing  the  dams. 
The  towing-path  in  some  places  stands  in  need  of  repairing,  and  in 
some  places  has  been  repaired. 

The  construed  >n  of  this  line  seems  to  have  been  very  unwise,  and 
a  further  expenditure  of  money  in  repairing  it,  would  also  seem  to  be 


12 


injudicious.  If  the  waters  of  the  French  creek  should  be  found  ne¬ 
cessary  to  supply  the  Shenango  and  Conneaut  lines,  the  capacity  of 
the  feeder  will  be  adequate  to  convey  nearly  all  the  waters  of  that 
stream,  except  during  the  periods  of  freshets  or  wet  seasons,  into 
Conneaut  lake,  as  the  reservoir  for  supplying  the  above  mentioned 
canals.  Having  thus  diverted  the  stream  from  its  natural  channel, 
would  it  not  be  folly  to  maintain  dams  and  locks,  collectors,  supervi¬ 
sors  and  lock  keepers  upon  a  stream,  that  for  three-fourths  of  the 
boating  season,  will  be  destitute  of  an  adequate  supply  of  water? 

Your  committee  believe  it  would  be  advantageous  to  the  inhabi¬ 
tants  along  the  French  Creek  valley,  to  have  the  dams  removed,  leav¬ 
ing  to  them  the  unobstructed  natural  descending  navigation  of  the 
stream.  Yet  the  committee  are  unwilling  to  recommend  such  an 
apparently  destructive  measure,  until  the  completion  of  the  Erie 
extension  be  consummated,  when  actual  demonstration  will  prove  the 
correctness  or  fallacy  of  their  anticipations. 

WEST  BRANCH. 

The  West  Branch  canal  is  in  fine  navigable  order,  seeming  to  re¬ 
quire  very  little  repairs,  except  what  may  be  necessary  for  giavelling 
and  cribbing  the  dams,  and  repairing  and  rebuilding  a  few  bridges. 
With  regard  to  the  amount  actually  necessary  for  properly,  and  as 
near  as  may  be,  permanently,  securing  the  dam,  the  committee  had 
not,  as  has  been  already  stated,  the  means  of  acquiring  accurate  infor¬ 
mation,  but  when  they  take  into  consideration  the  time,  the  season  and 
circumstances  under  which  the  report  and  estimate  was  made  by  the 
engineers,  they  are  disposed  to  suspect  that  those  estimates  are  pre¬ 
dicated  upon  information  obtained  from  irresponsible,  or  probably 
interested  persons,  rather  than  founded  upon  actual,  careful,  personal 
examination.  And  when  they  observe,  as  they  have  frequently  had 
occasion  to  do,  the  strong  disposition  manifested  throughout  those 
reports,  to  avoid  erring  on  the  side  of  economy  and  frugality,  the 
committee  feel  constrained  to  believe,  that  the  amount  required  for 
repairing  the  dams  on  the  West  Branch,  are  greater  than  a  judicious 
application  of  the  repair  fund  would  justify.  These  remarks  may 
be  deemed  invidious,  perhaps  taken  as  unkind,  but  they  result  from 
the  honest  convictions  of  the  committee,  after  a  deliberate  investiga¬ 
tion  of  the  whole  subject.  Your  committee  entertain  the  opinion 


13 


that  the  sum  of  forty  thousand  dollars  will  be  amply  sufficient  for 
repairs  on  this  division,  during  the  ensuing  year. 

NORTH  BRANCH. 

This  division  of  the  public  improvements  is  far  from  being  in 
good  condition,  but  is  navigable  at  present,  and  perhaps  with  proper 
c-are  may  be  kept,  during  the  season,  in  a  condition  to  accommodate 
all  the  business  that  may  be  offered.  The  feeder  dam  at  Lacka¬ 
wanna  has  been  destroyed  by  a  freshet  since  the  adjournment  of  the 
Legislature.  A  temporary  dam  has  been  constructed,  which  now 
turns  the  water  into  the  canal,  but  that  cannot  be  expected  to  last 
long.  The  dam  should  be  rebuilt  with  the  least  possible  delay.  The 
scite  of  the  old  dam  is  a  very  bad  one,  being  a  gravel  bottom,  a  por¬ 
tion  of  which  has  been  washed  out  to  the  depth  of  twelve  or  fifteen 
feet,  and  requiring  a  guard  bank  on  the  north  side  of  considerable 
extent.  The  committee  were  informed  by  several  respectable  gen¬ 
tlemen  who  are  acquainted  with  the  locality,  that  there  is  a  situation 
about  a  mile  and  a  half  up  the  river,  from  the  present  dam,  where  a 
rock  foundation  could  be  obtained,  with  rocks  on  each  side  of  the 
river,  where  a  permanent  dam  might  be  erected  at  a  small  expense. 
Such  a  change  would,  however,  of  necessity  encounter  the  expense  of 
extending  the  feeder;  what  that  would  amount  to,  the  committee  had 
no  opportunity  of  ascertaining;  but  would  suggest,  as  in  the  case  of 
the  French  Creek  feeder  dam,  the  propriety  and  probable  utility  of 
authorizing  the  Canal  Commissioners  to  investigate  the  subject,  and 
exercise  their  discretion,  as  in  their  opinion  the  interests  of  the  Com¬ 
monwealth  might  require.  A  portion  of  the  vertical  wall,  on  the 
towing-path  side,  at  and  below  Pittston,  and  a  part  of  the  berm  bank 
wall,  above  Pittston,  has  fallen  down,  and  several  hill  slips  have  oc¬ 
curred,  leaving  considerable  obstruction  in  the  canal.  For  a  more 
detailed  account  of  the  repairs  necessary  upon  this  line,  the  com¬ 
mittee  submit  the  following  statement,  made  by  Dr.  Whippo,  who 
1  was  employed  by  and  accompanied  the  committee. 

North  Branch  Division,  below  Nanticoke  Dam. 

In  order  to  put  this  division  in  complete  repair,  it  will  be  neces¬ 
sary  to  raise  the  wall  between  the  guard  lock  and  the  upper  end  of 
the  pier  head,  adjoining  the  dam,  to  rebuild  the  guard  lock,  make  a 


14 


new  one  at  Henlock’s  creek,  rebuild  the  seven  lift  locks,  repair  fifty- 
five  road  and  farm  bridges,  and  repair  the  Nanticoke  dam. 

The  most  economical  plan  to  do  this,  it  appears  to  me,  would  be 
to  build  the  crib  above  the  guard  lock,  repair  the  bridges  and  Nanti¬ 
coke  dam,  make  the  ordinary  repairs,  and  furnish  the  materials  for 
the  locks  during  the  present  season;  and  next  season  draw  off  the 
water  and  build  the  locks,  using  the  old  foundations  and  irons,  which 
I  have  no  doubt  would  answer,  with  some  slight  alterations  and  re¬ 
pairs.  This  would  be  more  economical  than  to  build  the  new  locks 
beside  the  old  ones  with  the  water  in  the  canal,  because  we  should 
not  only  save  a  heavy  expense  in  the  two  items  just  referred  to,  but 
we  should  also  save  the  unavoidable  expense  of  pumping  and  bailing 
water  in  the  seven  lift  locks. 

The  locks  should  be  built  on  the  combined  plan.  The  guard 
lock  at  Henlock’s  creek  is  necessary,  as  the  water  of  this  stream 
frequently  rises  very  high,  which,  with  the  present  guard  gates,  often 
stops  the  navigation  for  several  days  at  a  time.  I  would  locate  this 
lock  below  the  creek,  and  let  the  water  in  flood  times  discharge  itself 
over  the  wier  now  constructed.  The  banks  of  the  canal,  and  the 
adjoining  banks  next  the  river,  between  the  guard  lock  and  this 
stream,  are  in  several  places  washed  away.  This  was  done  several 
years  ago  by  a  high  flood,  which  destroyed  the  embankment  adjoin¬ 
ing  the  guard  lock,  and  let  the  water  into  the  canal  below,  making  so 
heavy  a  pressure  upon  the  banks  as  unavoidably  to  break  them. 

By  making  the  new  guard  lock  where  I  propose,  it  will  not  be 
necessary  to  repair  these  banks.  If  the  water  of  the  river  should 
ever  rise  high  enough  to  flow  over  the  banks,  (which  must  be  a  rare 
occurrence,)  and  cover  the  towing-path,  it  cannot  at  any  rate  remain 
up  long,  and  would  not  therefore  be  a  very  serious  inconvenience. 
A.  heavy  expense  would  in  this  way  be  saved  in  raising  and  repairing 
these  banks;  the  floods  of  Henlock’s  creek  could  never  do  any  injury, 
as  they  would  all  be  discharged  over  the  wier,  and  the  navigation 
could  not  be  impeded,  except  in  very  extraordinary  floods,  and  then 
only  for  a  very  short  time. 

The  following  estimate  of  the  cost  of  the  locks,  I  feel  confident,  is 
sufficiently  high  to  cover  the  cost,  making  them  upon  the  combined 
plan,  and  in  the  most  substantial  manner.  In  examining  the  estimate 
of  the  cost  of  the  locks  upon  the  Wyoming  line,  above  Nanticoke 
dam,  which  are  made  upon  the  combined  plan,  I  find  that  none  of 


15 


Shem  cost  more  than  five  thousand  dollars,  except  one,  (the  third) 
which  cost  $5,389.  The  others  cost  a  little  more  than  four  thou¬ 
sand  dollars,  except  two,  which  cost  $3,585  each.  The  locks  on 
the  West  Branch  cost  nearly  four  thousand  dollars  each  on  an  ave¬ 
rage,  those  on  the  Delaware  division,  four  thousand  seven  hundred 
dollars  each,  and  those  on  the  Juniata  division,  (Frankstown  line,) 
three  thousand  one  hundred  dollars  each.  It  is  true  that  similar  work 
will  cost  more  now,  on  account  of  the  increased  price  of  labor  and 
provisions;  but  then,  by  using  the  old  foundations  and  irons,  nearly 
as  much  may  be  saved  as  will  balance  this  disadvantage. 

Another  reason  which  induces  me  to  believe  that  the  estimate  is 
high  enough  is,  that  several  individuals  entitled  to  credit  on  this  line, 
informed  me  that  the  stone  could  be  delivered  at  the  scites  of  the  locks 
at  one  dollar  a  perch ;  and  as  a  confirmation  of  this  statement,  Mr. 
Crownover,  one  of  the  supervisors,  told  me  that  he  had  entered  into 
contract  with  responsible  individuals,  to  build  several  bridge  abut¬ 
ments  of  stone ,  at  two  dollars  a  perch,  including  the  excavation  of 
the  foundations. 

The  bridges,  in  my  opinion,  ought  to  be  built  upon  a  cheaper  plan 
than  to  make  stone  abutments.  As  I  said  above,  they  are  fifty-five 
in  number,  twenty-four  of  which  require  simply  to  be  keyed  up,  and 
they  will  last  several  years.  The  remaining  thirty-one  stand  on 
wooden  tressels,  which  are  so  much  decayed  and  broken  as  to  render 
them  unsafe— the  superstructures  are  in  some  instances  decayed  at 
the  ends  also.  These  bridges  can  be  cheaply  repaired  by  sloping 
down  the  embankments  at  the  ends  of  the  bridges,  and  putting  in  two 
additional  reaches  and  two  new  tressels  at  each  bridge.  The  tressel 
on  the  berm  side  could  be  set  a  little  further  in  towards  the  canal 
than  the  old  ones,  and  the  superstructure  keyed  up,  and  the  decayed 
ends  cut  off.  In  this  way,  they  may  be  made  useful  and  good  for 
many  years. 

In  regard  to  an  additional  feeder  for  this  line  of  canal,  I  can  only 
say,  that  none  can  be  taken  in  of  any  value,  so  far  as  I  know,  ex¬ 
cept  by  making  a  high  dam  across  the  river  at  the  head  of  Rocky 
Island,  which  would  be  exceedingly  expensive  and  injurious  to  the 
river  navigation.  Fishing  creek,  which  has  been  talked  of  as  a 
feeder,  becomes  so  low  in  dry  seasons,  that  it  would  hardly  be  worth 
while  to  incur  the  expense  of  taking  it  in.  Besides,  I  am  of  opinion 
that  the  line  can  be  sufficiently  supplied  from  Nanticoke  dam.  In 


16 


making-  the  guard  lock  at  this  place,  a  sluice  should  be  constructed,, 
sufficiently  large  to  let  through  the  requisite  quantity  of  water ;  and 
as  there  is  a  descent  on  the  bottom  of  the  canal,  of  one-tenth  of  afoot 
in  a  mile,  and  as  the  banks  of  the  canal  are  thick  and  apparently 
strong,  I  have  no  doubt  that  a  sufficient  supply  could  be  sent  down, 
without  doing  any  injury  to  the  canal  or  the  navigation;  it  is  true  it 
would  cause  a  considerable  current  in  the  canal ;  but  when  it  is  con¬ 
sidered  that  much  the  largest  portion  of  the  freight — perhaps  nine- 
tenths  of  it — will  be  downwards,  and  that  the  return  boats  will 
generally  be  empty,  this  objection  will  have  but  little  force. 


Estimated  amount  of  money  necessary  for  the  present  season,  upon 
the  supposition  that  the  bridges  will  be  repaired ,  and  the  timber - 
crib  above  the  guard  lock  built.  Including  also ,  the  expense  of 
ordinary  repairs,  procuring  the  materials  for  the  locks ,  and  com¬ 
pleting  Nanticoke  dam ,  viz: 


Repairing  fifty-five  road  and  farm  bridges, 
Building  timber  crib  above  guard  lock, 


$3,850  00 
3,650  00 


Repairing  aqueducts  and  waste  weirs,  rebuilding  walls,  fac¬ 
ing  banks,  & c.,  &c.,  say,  10,000  00 

Procuring  materials  for  eight  locks,  19,200  00 

Do  do  one  lock,  3,000  00 

Completing  Nanticoke  dam,  1,500  00 


Total  sum  for  this  season, 


$41,200  00 


Estimated  amount  of  money  necessary  to  put  the  line  in  complete 
repair ,  upon  the  supposition  that  the  locks  will  be  built  next 
season  and  the  water  drawn  off  for  that  purpose,  viz  : 
Workmanship  on  seven  locks,  $19,950  00 

Do.  one  lock,  3,750  00 

Do.  do  2,600  00 

Pumping  and  bailing  water  at  guard  lock,  and  making 

dam  above  to  turn  off  the  water,  1,500  00 

Total  amount  for  next  year,  $27,800  00 

Add  estimate  for  materials,  repairing  bridges,  &c.,  <fc c., 

as  above,  viz  :  41,200  00 


$69,000  00 


17 

WYOMING  DIVISION, 

Between  Nanticoke  Dam  and  the  Lackawanna  Creek. 

To  put  this  division  in  complete  repair,  it  would  be  necessary  to 
rebuild  the  dam  across  the  Lackawanna,  which  has  recently  been 
swept  away  ;  to  repair  two  bridges  ;  the  aqueduct  across  Mill  creek  ; 
rebuild  a  piece  of  vertical  wall,  which  has  fallen  down  ;  cleaning  out 
the  canal  in  several  places  ;  make  a  large  amount  of  wall  and  em¬ 
bankment  along  the  pool  above  Nanticoke  dam,  and  a  towing-path 
bridge  over  the  pool  near  its  lower  termination. 

The  two  latter  improvements,  however,  are  not  absolutely  neces¬ 
sary  to  keep  up  the  navigation.  I  am  informed  that  there  is  not  now, 
and  has  not  heretofore  been,  any  considerable  amount  of  business 
done  upon  this  division,  and  I  presume  there  will  not  be,  until  the 
entire  communication  is  completed  to  tide  and  to  the  state  of  New 
York.  I  would  suggest,  therefore,  whether  it  would  not  be  good 
policy  on  the  part  of  the  State,  to  omit  these  expensive  improve¬ 
ments  for  the  present.  The  communications  above  alluded  to,  are 
now  in  progress.  When  they  are  completed  and  the  business  becomes 
extensive  and  active,  as  it  probably  will  do,  they  will  be  found  ne¬ 
cessary,  and  should  then  be  made  without  delay. 

Should  these  improvements  be  omitted,  as  I  suggest,  the  estimate 
for  this  division,  will  then  be  as  follows,  viz  : 


Rebuilding  dam  across  the  Lackawanna,  $10,000  00 

Repairing  two  bridges.,  200  00 

Breach  in  wall,  540  00 

Mill  Creek  aqueduct,  600  00 

Clearing  out  canal,  &c.,  1,500  00 


$12,840  00 

In  these  views  the  committee  concur,  except  the  omission  of  the 
towing-path  along  the  pool  of  the  Nanticoke  dam.  If  the  navigation 
is  to  be  kept  up  at  all,  that  towing-path  ought  to  be  repaired.  And, 
as  it  will  require  a  considerable  quantity  of  stone,  some  of  which 
must  perhaps  be  brought  some  distance,  the  work  ought  to  be  com¬ 
menced  immediately,  when  the  stones  could  be  procured  by  using 
the  canal  or  the  pool  of  the  dam.  For  this  item,  ten  thousand  dol¬ 
lars  would  probably  be  sufficient  for  the  present  season.  Thus 
making  the  whole  amount  necessary  for  the  repair  of  the  North 
Branch  canal,  sixty-five  thousand  dollars. 

2 


SUSQUEHANNA  DIVISION. 

With  the  exception  of  the  Middle  Creek  aqueduct,  this  line  of 
canal  is  in  very  good  repair.  The  aqueduct  alluded  to  is  in  a  pre¬ 
carious  condition.  At  the  time  the  committee  visited  it,  the  naviga¬ 
tion  was  interrupted  for  about  two  days,  in  consequence  of  one  of 
the  piers  having  given  way.  The  mason-work  of  those  piers,  origi¬ 
nally,  appears  to  have  been  badly  executed,  and  nearly  all  require 
repairing ;  the  abutments  remain  firm,  but  the  timber  of  the  super¬ 
structure  is  considerably  decayed  and  will  require  to  be  renewed. 
Some  of  the  locks  leak  a  good  deal  und  require  repairing.  A  number 
of  the  lock  gates  are  decayed  and  somewhat  shattered,  so  as  to  ren¬ 
der  new  ones  necessary  in  the  course  of  next  winter.  Some  ten  or 
twelve  bridges  need  slight  repairing,  but  the  expense  will  be  incon¬ 
siderable.  The  banks  generally  on  this  line  are  strong,  and  seem  to 
require  very  little  expenditure. 

Of  the  sum  requisite  for  repairing  the  Shamokin  dam,  the  com¬ 
mittee  had  not  the  means  of  acquiring  accurate  information,  but  are 
of  the  opinion  that  the  estimate  made  by  the  engineer  is  larger  than 
will  be  really  necessary® 

The  following  sums  are  believed  to  be  fully  adequate  to  meet  the 
necessary  expenses  on  the  Susquehanna  division,  viz : 

Shamokin  dam,  $12,000  00 

Repairing  Middle  Creek  aqueduct,  7,000  00 

Ordinary  repair,  16,000  00 


Whole  amount, 

DELAWARE  DIVISION. 


$35,000  00 


The  Delaware  division  of  the  Pennsylvania  canal  requires,  and  is 
now  undergoing  extensive  repairs.  In  addition  to  the  ordinary  re¬ 
pairs  rendered  necessary  by  time  and  the  natural  decay  of  materials, 
this  line  sustained  material  injury  by  the  freshet  in  January  last,  and 
also  by  the  more  recent  one  during  the  last  month.  The  damage 
has  been  temporarily  repaired  and  the  water  let  in.  The  hope  was 
entertained,  when  the  committee  was  there,  that  the  canal  would  be 
in  navigable  order  in  the  course  of  a  few  days. 

The  feeder  dam  at  Easton  is  undermined,  and  one  of  the  abutments 
entirely  destroyed.  The  lock  at  this  place  is  also  much  out  of  repair. 
Some  of  the  bridges  need  repairing,  and  others  will  have  to  be  rebuilt. 


19 


The  culvert  and  aqueduct  at  the  head  of  Rocky  falls,  are  being  re¬ 
built.  The  aqueducts  at  Gallows  run  and  Durham  creek  have  been 
rebuilt ;  and  that  at  Tinicum  partially  so.  One  or  two  of  the  locks 
are  slightly  collapsed,  and  otherwise  in  want  of  repair;  many  of  the 
locks  need  but  slight,  others  more  general  repairs.  The  locks  on  this 
canal  are  but  eleven  feet  wide,  and  the  canal  in  many  places  too  nar¬ 
row  for  the  accommodation  of  the  increased  trade,  which  the  exten¬ 
sive  coal  fields,  to  which  it  constitutes  a  principal  outlet,  will  eventu¬ 
ally  throw  upon  this  line  of  improvements.  Your  committee  are  of 
the  opinion  that  wherever  it  becomes  necessary  to  rebuild  locks,  the 
dimensions  thereof  should  be  increased  to  fifteen  or  sixteen  feet,  so 
that,  in  time,  the  capacity  of  the  whole  line  may  be  made  commen¬ 
surate  with  the  business  that  may  be  offered. 

The  towing-path,  in  many  places,  is  too  low,  and  subject  to  be 
overflown  during  high  freshets;  this  cannot  be  obviated  without 
incurring  enormous  expense.  As  to  the  expediency  of  encountering 
this  expense  at  this  time,  your  committee  express  no  opinion.  The 
banks  of  the  canal,  where  they  have  not  been  injured  by  the  late 
freshets,  are  generally  in  good  order.  On  this  division,  the  com¬ 
mittee  think,  considering  the  extensive  injuries  done  by  the  late 
freshet,  the  sum  of  forty  thousand  dollars  may  be  required. 

The  committee  did  not  visit  the  Columbia  rail  road,  not  having 
had  time  to  do  so  during  the  recess  and  not  choosing  to  neglect  their 
official  duties  in  the  Senate  chamber. 

The  whole  amount,  then,  which  the  committee  deem  necessary  for 
the  repairs  of  the  public  improvements,  exclusive  of  the  Columbia 
and  Philadelphia  rail  road,  is  as  follows,  viz: 


Eastern  divisiofi,  ....  $40,000 

Juniata  division,  -  80,000 

Allegheny  portage  rail  road,  ...  25,000 

Western  division,  -  35,000 

Beaver  division,  ....  30,000 

French  Creek  feeder,  -  -  -  15,000 

West  Branch,  -----  40,000 
North  Branch,  -  65,000 

Susquehanna,  -  -  -  -  -  35,000 

Delaware  division,  -  -  -  -  40,000 


Total  amount,  -  -  -  $405,000 


20 


If  to  this  be  added  fifty  thousand  dollars,  for  ordinary  repairs  on 
the  Columbia  rail  road,  and  one  hundred  and  ninety-two  thousand 
dollars,  being  the  amount  applicable  to  repairs  this  year  out  of  the 
three  hundred  thousand  dollars,  appropriated  by  the  act  of  February 
9th,  supposing  that  the  seventy-eight  thousand  dollars  which  has 
been  drawn  by  the  old  supervisors,  to  have  been  applied  to  the  pay¬ 
ment  of  old  debts,  we  would  have  the  sum  of  six  hundred  and  forty- 
seven  thousand  dollars  appropriated  to  repairs  for  the  present  season; 
a  sum  much  larger  than  has  ever  been  devoted  to  that  object  in  any 
one  year  heretofore. 

By  a  report  made  by  the  Auditor  General  to  the  House  of  Repre¬ 
sentatives,  on  the  20th  of  February  last,  it  appears  that  there  has 
been  expended  for  ordinary  repairs,  during  the  three  preceding  years, 
the  following  sums,  viz: 

1836,  ....  $324,551  40 

1837,  -  399,026  24 

1838,  ....  302,217  13 

3)1,025,794  77 

Making  an  average  of  -  -  341,931  59 

This  estimate,  though  far  below  that  of  the  engineer’s,  your  com¬ 
mittee  deems  ample  and  liberal.  Your  committee  are  sensible  of  the 
evil  effects  of  being  too  penurious  in  making  appropriations  for  re¬ 
pairs.  The  public  agents  should  always  be  sufficiently  provided 
with  money  to  enable  them  to  pay  cash  for  materials  furnished  and 
services  rendered.  This  would  enable  them  to  make  purchases  on 
the  most  advantageous  terms,  and  command  the  services  of  the  best 
laborers.  The  commonwealth  ought  to  be  known  as  the  best  pay¬ 
master,  instead  of  being  liable,  as  is  sometimes  the  case,  to  be  stig¬ 
matized  as  the  worst.  But  while  plenty  should  be  given,  profusion 
should  be  carefully  guarded  against.  Too  great  liberality  on  tHe  part 
of  the  Legislature,  might  encourage  a  spirit  of  negligence  or  prodi¬ 
gality  on  the  part  of  the  public  officers,  and  the  system  which  is 
intended  to  promote  economy  and  frugality  in  the  necessary  disburs- 
ment  of  the  public  money,  may,  by  a  too  generous  advancement,  be 
productive  of  a  contrary  effect. 

The  Committee  cannot  overlook  the  fact,  that,  in  the  late  reports 
made  by  the  engineer,  occasion  seemed  to  be  taken  and  a  disposition 


21 


was  strongly  manifested  to  swell  the  estimates  to  an  unreasonable 
amount.  This  circumstance,  taken  in  connection  with  some  expres¬ 
sions  used  by  the  Canal  Commissioners,  evinces  an  earnest  desire  to 
create  an  impression  upon  the  public  mind,  that  under  the  late  ad¬ 
ministration,  the  public  improvements  had  been  neglected,  and  had 
suffered  from  the  want  of  timely  repairs.  Of  such  negligence,  the 
committee  take  occasion  to  say,  they  have,  upon  inquiry  and  ob¬ 
servation,  found  no  evidence.  The  repairs  which  are  now  neces¬ 
sary,  are  incident  to  the  common  wear  and  tear  of  the  works  and  the 
natural  decay  of  the  materials  of  construction.  In  some  instances 
there  may  have  been  a  defectiveness  in  the  original  construction,  but 
that  took  place  long  before  the  late  administration  came  into  power; 
consequently  it  was  not  chargeable  with  those  deficiencies.  The 
officers  under  the  late  administration  not  only  expended  the  whole 
appropriation  made  for  repairs,  but  incurred  a  debt  of  one  hundred 
and  thirty-seven  thousand  dollars  in  making  necessary  repairs  to  keep 
the  improvements  in  proper  condition.  The  fault  then,  if  any  there 
is,  would  seem  to  rest  upon  the  Legislature,  who  had  neglected  to 
make  the  necessary  provisions  for  keeping  up  repairs. 

Your  committee  regrets  the  necessity  of  adverting  to  these  things. 
They  deprecate  the  introduction  of  any  thing  like  political  or  party 
feeling  in  the  prosecution  or  management  of  our  internal  improve¬ 
ment  system  ;  but  the  inference  was  too  glaring  to  escape  observa¬ 
tion,  and  too  palpable  to  be  permitted  to  pass  unrebuked.  The  com¬ 
mittee  would  also  observe,  that  in  relation  to  the  present  supervisors 
on  the  lines,  so  far  as  their  conduct  came  under  the  personal  observa¬ 
tion  of  the  committee,  no  want  of  attention  or  care  has  fallen  with¬ 
in  their  view.  A  disposition  to  subserve  the  interests  of  the  com¬ 
monwealth,  by  keeping  the  improvements  in  the  best  possible  condi¬ 
tion,  was  everywhere  evinced;  Some  complaints  were  made  in  re¬ 
gard  to  the  payment  of  debts  contracted  by  their  predecessors.  In 
that,  however,  the  subordinates  have  only  acted  in  accordance  with 
the  instructions  received  from  their  superiors. 

The  committee  have  accused  the  engineers  with  a  disposition  to 
increase  the  amount  required  for  repairs  beyond  what  a  liberal  policy 
and  sound  prudence  would  justify.  To  sustain  this  allegation,  they 
will  refer  to  a  few  particular  items,  which  they  have  had  full  oppor¬ 
tunity  of  carefully  examining. 

The  Laries  creek  aqueduct,  on  the  West  Branch  division,  the  en¬ 
gineer  says,  “  requires  a  course  of  heavy  stone  compactly  placed 


22 


round  each  pier  and  abutment  to  secure  their  foundations  ;  unless 
this  be  done,  a  sudden  rise  in  the  creek  might  cause  the  total  destruc¬ 
tion  of  the  structure.”  Estimated  cost  one  thousand  two  hundred  and 
fifty  dollars.  At  the  time  the  committee  visited  this  aqueduct,  the 
water  was  low  and  clear,  affording  a  full  opportunity  of  seeing  every 
part  of  it,  except  the  foundation,  which  is  under  ground.  This  struc¬ 
ture  has  now  stood  for  some  four  or  five  years.  The  walls  are  firm, 
and  appear  very  substantial,  not  having  a  crack,  nor  any  other  evidence 
that  the  foundation  or  any  other  part  thereof  has  given  way  in  the 
least,  or  is  likely  soon  to  do  so.  The  timbers  of  the  trunk  are  also 
firm  and  solid  and  the  trunk  leaks  very  little.  But  the  engineer  says, 
“  a  sudden  rise  in  the  creek  misrht  cause  the  total  destruction  of  the 

o 

structure.”  True,  such  an  event  is  not  without  the  range  of  possi¬ 
bility.  Extraordinary  freshets  and  violent  convulsions  of  nature 
sometimes  demolish  the  most  permanent  works  of  human  construc¬ 
tion.  But  the  legislature  might  as  well  appropriate  twenty  millions 
to  renew  all  our  public  improvements,  as  to  give  one  thousand  two 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars  for  repairing  the  Laries  creek  aqueduct. — 
To  do  what  is  recommended  by  the  engineers  would  not  only  ob¬ 
struct  the  passages  of  the  water  and  thereby  endanger  the  safety  of 
the  aqueduct.  The  utmost  that  the  most  cautious  prudence  could  re¬ 
quire  would  be  the  placing  a  course  or  courses  of  flat  stones  around 
parts  of  the  piers,  which  could  be  done  at  a  small  expense,  as  stone 
are  close  at  hand.  Even  this  the  committee  deem  unnecessary. 

The  next  and  last  items  which  the  committee  intend  to  notice, 
are  the  aqueducts  over  Stony  creek*  and  Paxton  creek,  on  the 
eastern  division— the  cost  of  the  former,  estimated  at  seven  thou¬ 
sand  eight  hundred  dollars,  and  the  latter  at  six  thousand  dollars. — 
The  walls  of  both  those  structures  have  given  way.  Some  of  the 
stone  used  are  the  red  sandstone,  of  which  some  appear  to  have  dis¬ 
integrated  by  the  action  of  frost  and  weather.  To  prevent  this,  and 
to  strengthen  the  arches,  wooden  centres,  composed  of  timber  and 
plank,  has  been  placed  within  the  arches.  These  timbers  appear  per¬ 
fectly  sound,  as  does  also  the  lining  of  the  aqueducts,  which  is  also 
of  timber,  excepting  a  few  pieces  that  are  slightly  decayed  on  the  out- 

*  The  committee  have  been  told,  by  the  supervisor  on  this  line,  that  the  estimate 
of  seven  thousand  eight  hundred  dollars  for  the  Stony  Creek  aqueduct,  was  intend¬ 
ed  for  that  at  Clark’s  creek:  if  so,  it  is  not  so  extravagant,  though  still  double  what 
the  committee  conceive  to  be  necessary. 


23 


side.  Your  committee  conceive  there  is  no  occasion  for  extensive  re¬ 
pairs  to  either  of  those  aqueducts;  they  are  light  and  with  slight 
judicious  repairing,  not  exceeding  four  hundred  dollars  each,  may 
stand  for  a  number  of  years.  Your  committee  observed  numerous  in¬ 
stances  where  a  corresponding  exaggeration  existed  in  regard  to  the 
amount  required,  but  anxious  to  make  this  report  as  brief  as  circum¬ 
stances  will  permit,  they  forbear  to  particularize  any  further. 

The  engineers  have  reported  nearly  one  hundred  thousand  dollars 
as  necessary  for  clearing  out  canals  and  pools,  and  in  some  places 
have  connected  with  these  item3,  the  repairing  of  the  towing-path. 
How  much  may  be  necessary  for  the  two  former  items,  the  committee 
cannot  tell ;  the  canal  being  filled  with  water,  they  had  no  oppor¬ 
tunity  of  seeing  the  amount  of  deppsite  at  the  bottom;  neither  could 
they  ascertain  how  much  had  been  removed  since  the  report  was 
made.  Judging,  however,  from  circumstances  within  their  know¬ 
ledge,  the  committee  would  infer  that  a  portion  of  the  cleaning  out 
had  already  been  done.  Evidence  of  this  appears  at  some  places  on 
the  banks  of  the  canal,  and  further  evidence  is  adduced  from  the  fact, 
that  boats  now  navigate  every  part  of  the  canals  with  facility  and  un¬ 
obstructed  when  the  levels  are  properly  filled. 

The  repairs  of  the  canal  banks  form  another  item  which  may  be 
increased  or  diminished  to  any  requisite  amount,  at  the  discretion  of 
the  supervisors.  It  is  desirable  that  our  canal  banks  should  be  pro¬ 
tected  by  a  vertical,  slope  or  rip-jap  wall  throughout  their  whole  ex¬ 
tent,  except  where  they  are  composed  of  rock  or  gravel,  and  are  ca¬ 
pable  of  resisting  the  action  of  the  water.  Much  work  of  this  char¬ 
acter  has  already  been  done ;  more  still  remains  to  be  done.  To 
undertake  it  all  in  one  season  would  be  injudicious,  and  very  expen¬ 
sive.  The  weaker  parts  should  be  first  protected,  and  by  complet¬ 
ing  some  every  year,  the  whole  may  in  a  few  years  be  perfectly  se¬ 
cured.  Different  opinions  prevail  even  among  those  who  have  had 
considerable  experience  on  the  subject,  respecting  the  best  mode  of 
securing  the  canal  banks.  Some  recommend  vertical  wall,  others 
prefer  slope  wall,  whilst  a  third  class  insist  that  rip-rap,  made  of 
stones  broken  small,  is  preferable  to  either  of  the  other  modes.  The 
committee  are  of  opinion  that  slope  wall,  commenced  about  eighteen 
inches  below  the  surface  of  the  water,  composed  of  good  stones  care¬ 
fully  laid  down,  will  constitute  the  cheapest  and  best  protection  that 
can  be  made.  It  seems  to  combine  economy,  durability  and  utility 
in  a  greater  degree  than  any  other  that  has  fallen  within  their  view. 


24 


Before  the  repair  of  any  of  the  dams  is  undertaken,  your  commit¬ 
tee  would  recommend  a  careful  personal  examination  by  some  com¬ 
petent  engineer,  at  a  time  when  the  water  is  low  and  an  accurate  es¬ 
timate  can  be  made,  for  they  feel  assured  that  the  estimates  heretofore 
made  cannot  be  relied  upon  with  certainty. 

The  committee  was  also  required  to  ascertain  the  amount  of  money 
actually  due  for  repairs,  and  materials  furnished  for  repairs;  and 
whether  any  supervisors  have  unsettled  accounts,  and  whether  they 
have  procured  authenticated  vouchers  without  paying  the  amount  due 
laborers  and  others. 

There  seems  to  have  been  some  misapprehension  in  regard  to  the 
amount  due,  or  alleged  to  have  been  due  for  repairs,  under  the  late 
supervisors,  on  the  first  day  of  February  last.  The  present  board  of 
Canal  Commissioners  evinced  a  laudable  desire  to  have  the  precise 
situation  of  the  public  improvements,  at  the  period  these  improve¬ 
ments  passed  from  the  hands  of  their  predecessors  into  theirs,  laid 
before  the  Legislature;  so  that  whatever  of  merit  or  demerit  belonged 
to  either,  should  be  attributed  to  the  proper  source.  Whether  they 
intended  by  the  term  predecessors,  to  include  all  who  had  preceded 
them  in  the  capacity  of  Canal  Commissioners,  or  alluded  only  to  the 
board  which  immediately  preceded  them,  the  committee  cannot  de¬ 
termine,  but  the  general  impression  made  by  the  different  communi¬ 
cations  submitted  to  the  Legislature,  and  the  action  of  the  House  of 
Representatives  on  the  premises,  seemed  to  place  the  latter  construc¬ 
tion  upon  their  course.  A  similar  misunderstanding  seems  prevalent 
in  relation  to  the  communication  made  to  the  Governor  by  the  Canal 
Commissioners,  on  the  25th  of  March  last,  and  by  him  transmitted 
to  the  Legislature,  setting  forth  the  amount  of  debts  due  by  the  com¬ 
monwealth,  on  the  finished  lines  of  canal  and  rail  road,  on  the  first 
of  February  last.  The  prevailing  impression  was,  that  the  amount 
given,  ($31 0,574  62,)  was  due  by  the  preceding  supervisors  for  re¬ 
pairs,  and  in  a  bill  which  came  to  the  Senate  a  few  days  previous  to 
the  adjournment  on  the  27th  of  March,  there  was  the  sum  of  three 
hundred  thousand  dollars  to  pay  old  debts.  Your  committee  were  of 
the  opinion  that  those  reports  included  items  which  did  not  properly 
come  under  the  head  of  repairs,  and  for  which  specific  appropriations 
had  been  made;  and  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  this,  asked  for 
and  obtained  the  authority  under  which  this  report  is  made.  Justice 
to  the  former  board  demands  that  these  points  should  be  fairly  under¬ 
stood,  not  only  by  the  Legislature,  but  by  the  community  at  large. 


25 


On  careful  examination,  your  committee  discovered  that  the  report 
above  alluded  to  contained,  in  some  instances,  sums  due  for  damages, 
for  which  specific  appropriations  have  always  been  made,  and  for 
which  the  money  must  yet  be  in  the  treasury,  unless  the  Legislature 
neglected  to  appropriate  a  sufficient  amount.  In  other  instances,  the 
amount  due  to  lock  keepers  is  embraced;  this  too  is  payable  out  of  a 
separate  fund,  over  which  the  Canal  Commissioners  have  no  discre¬ 
tionary  control.  The  money  due  to  contractors  and  others  for  work 
done,  and  materials  furnished,  on  the  road  to  avoid  the  inclined  plane 
at  Columbia,  constitutes  a  heavy  item  in  that  report.  This,  although 
not  placed  under  the  direction  of  a  separate  superintendent,  is  in  fact 
new  work,  which  has  been  specifically  provided  for.  In  the  bill 
which  passed  on  the  9th  of  February  last,  there  was  thirty  thousand 
dollars  appropriated  to  this  road,  and  in  the  bill  above  alluded  to,  as 
passed  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  there  was  an  appropriation 
of  thirty-nine  thousand  dollars,  making  an  aggregate  of  sixty-nine 
thousand  dollars,  specifically  provided  for  the  payment  of  money  in¬ 
cluded  in  the  item  of  three  hundred  thousand  dollars,  for  the  payment 
of  old  debts,  in  the  same  bill.  Thus,  virtually  making  two  appro¬ 
priations  for  the  same  object. 

The  same  circumstance  occurs  int  relation  to  the  amount  due  for 
iron,  purchased  for  relaying  a  portion  of  the  northern  track  of  the 
eastern  division  of  the  Columbia  and  Philadelphia  rail  road.  By  the 
act  of  8th  January,  1838,  there  wa3  appropriated  for  this  purpose, 
the  sum  of  $59,060.  Of  this  sum,  $28,060  remained  in  the  treasury 
on  the  1st  February  last,  and  the  former  superintendent,  Mr.  Russell, 
on  the  final  settlement  of  his  account,  since,  has  refunded  $2,533  68, 
leaving  an  unexpended  balance  of  this  fund  of  $30,593  32  ;  and 
yet  this  sum  forms  a  part  of  the  $300,000  alleged  to  be  necessary  to 
pay  old  debts.  On  the  upper  part  of  the  Eastern  division  of  the 
Pennsylvania  canal,  the  supervisor  has  included  the  amount  expend¬ 
ed  for  repairing  the  aqueduct  over  the  Juniata  at  Duncan’s  Island, 
and  that  expended  for  the  construction  of  additional  locks  below 
Clark’s  ferry,  amounting  in  all  to  the  sum  of  $30,000.  This  was 
perfectly  right  on  the  part  of  the  supervisor,  acting  under  the  resolu¬ 
tion  of  the  Board  of  Canal  Commissioners,  with  the  exception  of  an 
inadvertent  mistake,  of  which  he  has  since  given  information  to  the 
committee,  and  which  reduces  the  amount  $5,600.  But  it  must  be 
remembered,  that  previous  to  the  communication  made  by  the  board, 


26 


namely,  on  the  9  th  of  February,  a  specific  appropriation  of  $30,000  was 
made  to  defray  the  cost  of  the  above  works,  which  money  was  in  the 
treasury,  subject  to  the  draft  of  the  supervisors  at  that  time,  yet  this  sum 
is  made  to  constitute  a  portion  of  the  three  hundred  thousand  dol¬ 
lars,  so  frequently  referred  to.  Another  item  in  that  report,  consists 
of  debts  due  and  alleged  to  be  due  from  the  commonwealth,  previous 
to  the  1st  of  January,  1836,  and  which  cannot  fairly  be  chargeable 
to  the  immediate  predecessors  of  the  present  board.  Of  the  justness 
and  validity  of  those  claims,  as  well  as  of  many  of  the  others,  your 
committee  think  there  is  strong  reason  to  doubt.  A  considerable  por¬ 
tion  of  this  class  is  composed  of  sums  due  on  certificates  issued  by 
John  Foresman,  formerly  supervisor  on  the  Delaware  canal,  during 
the  year  1832,  ’33,  ’34  and  ’35.  One  thousand  dollars  is  stated  to  be 
due  on  the  North  Branch  to  Mrs.  Nourse,  which  your  committee  find 
to  have  been  paid  in  December  last,  although  not  finally  settled  at 
the  Auditor  General’s  Office,  until  within  the  present  month.  There 
is  also  a  claim  returned  on  the  Allegheny  portage  rail  road  as  due  to 
Garber  and  O’Conner,  in  the  year  1836.  That  firm  has  been  dis¬ 
solved  for  several  years,  and  this  claim,  if  just  and  valid,  would  most 
probably  have  been  prosecuted  to  a  final  settlement  long  before  this 
time.  The  superintendent,  in  relation  to  this  claim,  says,  “  it  may 
have  been  settled,  but  still  stands  against  the  commonwealth,  by  the 
papers  in  the  office,  and  my  predecessor  thinks  it  has  not  been.” 

On  the  West  Branch  two  of  the  Supervisors,  Messrs.  Maxwell  and 
Reeder,  each  return  one  thousand  dollars,  due  to  the  contractors  on 
the  Muncy  dam.  On  enquiry,  your  committee  find  this  to  be  one 
and  the  same  sum.  That  the  return  was  so  made  by  the  supervisors, 
seems  to  have  been  occasioned  by  a  change  in  the  division  of  this 
line,  sometime  after  the  appointment  of  the  supervisors,  so  that  eaeh 
of  them  for  some  time  had  charge  of  the  Muncy  dam,  and  may  have 
been  strictly  in  the  line  of  his  duty  in  returning  all  the  claims  he 
could  find. 

These  circumstances,  with  others  of  similar  character,  excite  a 
suspicion  on  the  minds  of  your  committee  that  many  of  those  claims 
have  been  accepted  and  returned  by  the  supervisors  without  that 
strict  attention  to  accuracy,  and  that  scrutinizing  investigation  of  their 
validity  which  the  security  of  the  Commonwealth  from  gross  impo¬ 
sition  requires,  and  which  those  officers  would  no  doubt  have  be¬ 
stowed  upon  them  if  they  had  been  presented  for  final  settlement. 


27 


In  support  of  this  position,  the  committee  will  refer  to  some  of  the 
reports  made  by  the  Supervisors. 

Jacob  B.  Lyon,  Supervisor  on  the  Eastern  division,  has  in  his  report 
the  following  item  : 

“  Jacob  Foreman,  Esq.,  amount  due  him  for  services,  he  supposes , 
about  five  hundred  dollars.” 

David  Woods,  one  of  the  Supervisors  on  the  Juniata  division,  says, 
in  his  communication  to  the  Canal  Commissioners,  in  reference  to 
the  amount  returned  by  him,  “  I  would  suggest  that  some,  at  least,  of 
these  claims  would,  before  payment,  be  the  proper  subject  of  inves¬ 
tigation.” 

Joseph  Riter  another  Supervisior  on  the  Juniata,  says  : 

“You  will  observe  there  is  in  the  inventory,  a  claim  for  lock 
houses  now  being  built.  There  are  other  claims,  some  of  which  I 
have  heard  of,  which  with  the  lock  houses  will  amount  to  about  five 
.  thousand  dollars  more  than  I  have  reported.” 

At  the  foot  of  the  above  communication  we  find  the.  following : 

“  You  will  observe  the  amount  is  $10,715  84 

Amount  supposed  not  reported,  5,000  00 

$15,715  84” 

And  this  whole  amount  is  included  in  the  Commissioner’s  report. 

These  circumstances  induce  the  committee  to  believe,  that  the  sum 
included  in  the  following  tabular  statement,  under  the  head  of 
“  amount  actually  due  for  repairs  under  the  former  board  of  Canal 
Commissioners,”  will  ultimately  be  materially  diminished.  The 
subjoined  statement  exhibits  the  amount  returned  by  the  respective 
supervisors,  under  the  heads  to  which  the  committee  believe  they 
appropriately  belong.  To  effect  this,  has  been  a  task  of  some  dif¬ 
ficulty  and  considerable  labor,  in  the  execution  of  which,  some  in¬ 
advertent  errors  may  have  occurred,  notwithstanding  all  their  care  to 
j  prevent  it.  The  principle,  however,  the  committee  believe  to  be  cor¬ 
rect,  and  the  errors,  (if  anyj  they  flatter  themselves  will  not  be  ma¬ 
terial. 


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TABULAR  STATEMENT, 


P.  23 


Exhibiting  the  amount  of  money  due  by  the  Commonwealth  upon  finished  lines  of  Canal  and  Rail  Road,  on  the  first  day  of  February  last,  as  returned  by  the  present  Supervisors. 


SupersiR.irs'  Xame-J. 

Divisions, 

Due  for  services  rendered 
per  report  of  Supervisors. 

Due  for  materials  furnish¬ 
ed,  per  report  of  Supcr- 
sors. 

Whole  amount  as  report¬ 
ed  by  Supervisors. 

Motive  Power. 

Arn’t.  actually  due  for  repairs  under  the  former 
Board  of  Canal  Commissioners. 

Due  for  objects  specifically  provided  for. 

Del/ts  contracted  previous 
j  to  1st  January, 

Due  for  services  rendered, 
as  corrected  by  the  com¬ 
mittee. 

Due  for  materials  as  cor¬ 
rected  by  the  committee. 

Lock-keepers. 

Damages. 

Columbia  and  Philadel¬ 
phia  railway. 

Columbia  and  Phila.  railway, 

$2,965  50 

$7,401  25 

$10,366  75 

10,366  75 

$2,965  50 

$7,401  25 

do 

2,244  08 

47,163  33 

49,407  41 

931  66 

$46,231  76 

do 

732  22 

732  22 

732  22 

do 

61,719  85 

8,666  00 

70,385  85 

£94  70 

70,091  14 

John  Snodgrass, 

Allegheny  Portage  railway, 

6,496  00 

22,820  00 

29,316  00 

29,316  00 

6,496  00 

22,820  00 

do 

12,033  35 

5,006  00 

17,044  35 

11,472  35 

5,006  00 

$566  00 

Eastern  division, 

6,415  23 

636  69 

7,C51  92 

636  09 

2,143  00 

Aqueduct  and  Locks. 

J.  C.  M’Allister, 

do 

29,009  17 

3,079  55 

32,088  72 

8,809  17 

3,079  55 

200  00 

14,000  00 

Thomas  O’Brien, 

Juniata  division, 

1,672  26 

257  89 

1,930  15 

1,414  37 

257  89 

James  Langton, 

do 

1,985  80 

1,885  80 

1,985  80 

David  Woods, 

do 

12,531  69 

639  70 

3,171  39 

1,226  09 

1,535  70 

$410  00 

William  Price, 

do 

10,065  99 

10,065  99 

10,065  99 

Joseph  Riter, 

do 

2,580  56 

11,815  27 

10,395  83 

2,404  §6 

176  00 

A.  Morris, 

Western  division, 

847  64 

441  58 

1,289  22 

1,031  52 

258  00 

David  Watson, 

do 

4,825  00 

2,143  00 

6,968  00 

4,825  00 

2,143  00 

James  Horrell, 

do 

5,261  59 

5,261  59  i 

4,925  59 

336  00 

David  Connor, 

Delaware  division. 

2,746  86 

2,746  80 

1,969  42 

$777  44 

J.  B.  Calvin, 

do 

12,346  53 

391  20 

12,737  73 

10,424  98 

391  20 

1,921  55 

D.  Y.  Harman, 

do 

6,864  97 

6,783  63 

13,648  63 

6,588  97 

276  00 

John  Snyder, 

Susquehanna, 

401  03 

461  03 

90  85 

370  18 

John  Shriner, 

North  Branch, 

1,530  92 

1,381  71 

2,912  63 

1,320  92 

210  00 

D.  X.  Kronnover, 

do 

1  125  00 

1,125  (0 

125  00 

Henry  Reeder, 

Yvest  Branch, 

1,309  00 

1,509  00 

1,000  00 

124  00 

185  00 

Thomas  Maxwell, 

do 

263  50 

5,063  41 

5,320  91 

4,203  41 

123  50 

George  Crane, 

do 

453  00 

3,367  69 

3,820  69 

3,390  69 

430  00 

James  Adams, 

Franklin, 

105  00 

4,077  19 

4,182  19 

4,077  19 

105  00 

Hngh  Brawley, 

French  Creek, 

802  81 

862  81 

862  81 

- 

$179,459  55 

$131,135  09 

$310,594  64 

|  $39,682  75 

$91,671  58 

$45,234  46 

1  $2,448  50 

$3,464  18 

130,322  81 

$2,698  99 

29 


The  committee  have  understood  that  some  of  the  former  supervi¬ 
sors  have  accounts  that  are  yet  unsettled,  nor  can  they  be  settled,  in 
consequence  of  the  Treasurer  refusing  to  pay  the  amount  due  to  them, 
alleging  that  the  appropriation  is  inadequate  to  pay  those  old  claims 
and  the  current  expenses  of  the  present  supervisors. 

The  committee  were  informally  made  acquainted  with  several  in¬ 
stances  where  supervisors  had  taken  receipts,  or  vouchers,  without 
paying  the  amount  due,  and  but  in  one  instance  was  it  alleged  that  it 
still  remained  unpaid.  This  being  an  isolated  case,  and  one  where 
the  supervisor  had  been  removed  by  the  former  board,  being  but  a 
small  amount,  too,  the  committee  did  not  deem  it  of  sufficient  impor¬ 
tance  to  institute  an  inquiry,  but  content  themselves  with  bringing 
those  circumstances  to  the  notice  of  the  Senate;  it  is  but  justice,  how¬ 
ever,  to  the  supervisor  alluded  to,  to  state  that  he  expressed  a  desire 
that  the  matter  might  be  fully  investigated,  and  asserted  that  the 
charges  made  against  him  were  false.  In  the  other  cases  alluded  to, 
and  there  were  but  three  or  four,  the  committee  were  informed  that 
the  money  had  all  been  paid. 

The  committee  have  thus  endeavored  to  lay  before  the  Senate  a 
fair  and  candid  statement  of  the  present  condition  of  our  public  im¬ 
provements,  with  their  estimate  of  the  amount  required  for  repairs, 
and  their  opinions  of  the  various  matters  referred  to  them. 

All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted. 


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